Women’s basketball earns No. 9 seed in NCAA Tournament

The men’s team did not receive a bid for the third straight year.

By BENNETT CHRISTOFFERSON
Kara Dunn dribbles past a defender
USC and South Carolina will face off for the second time this season if both win their respective first-round NCAA Tournament games. Senior guard Kara Dunn is pictured in their first matchup Nov. 15, 2025. (Ethan Thai / Daily Trojan file photo)

For the fourth year in a row, USC women’s basketball is going dancing. 

The Trojans earned a No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament bracket, which was announced Sunday evening, and will face Clemson in their first-round matchup in Columbia, South Carolina, on Saturday. USC will look to return to peak form after losing each of its last four games, including an early exit from the Big Ten Tournament.

If the Trojans advance past the Tigers, they will likely earn a second-round rematch with South Carolina, the No. 1 seed in the Regional 4. The two squads previously met in November, when the Gamecocks came away with a 69-52 win in the inaugural “Real SC” event.


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Star freshman guard Jazzy Davidson will be available for the tournament, USC announced in an X post on Wednesday, after she sustained a shoulder injury during last week’s Big Ten Tournament. The Big Ten Freshman of the Year said after the game she was set to get an MRI scan, but the exact details of her injury were unclear.

The men’s team did not earn a bid for the third straight year after a disappointing finish to the season that saw USC lose eight consecutive games, culminating with an 83-79 loss to Washington in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament. The Trojans may still receive an invitation to the National Invitation Tournament or College Basketball Crown, the latter of which they participated in last year.

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